Joe McCord
Joe McCord is well known in Australia as 'Grafton's Greatest Export". A veritable polymath, he has mastered the sciences, athletics, business, as well as being a philanphropist and politician in the making. Early Childhood From humble beginnings on the outskirts of Grafton CBD, Joe McCord was known as "the toughest of street toughs" amongst the other 5 year olds on his street. Althought disputed, it was around this time that Joe lost his virginity. Kinda. He rounded up some of the more effeminate boys in the neighbourhood and asked them "so, which one of you wants to be my boyfriend". Most of the boys started crying. Then, Joe grabbed one of the boys, slung him over his shoulder, and shoved him into a wheelbarrow. Once in the wheelbarrow, the two young men stimulated sexual relations as best they could based on what they had seen of an 'Adults Only' edition of World's greatets Commercials, hosted by Andrew Daddo on what was Northern Rivers Television at the time. Not long ater, Joe started show the beginnings of a succesful MMA career. A humble servant of the ancient martial art 'Tae Kwon Do', or TKD as the bigger kids called it, Joe smashed his way to a yellow belt with two green tips. he was a formidable opponent in competition, with his secret weapon, the throat punch. Later banned in official tournament settings, and indeed one of the reasons Tae Kwon Do struggled to gain Olympic recognition, the throat punch was a deadly move. Consisting of a punch to the throat, it rendered opponents useless, grasping on the ground for breath. Taking a break from martial arts to indulge his artistic side, Joe entered the Grafton shopping centre talent quest. He sung Van Halen's "Higher" to a crowd of reportedly 30 people or more. In preparation, joe had even groomed his hair into a perfect mullet, giving him that additional 'wow' factor over the other contestant. Fearing that he was losing the crowd, he transitioned into the Macarena halfwasy thoughk, knowing it was a worldwide sensation at the time. The crowd was literally swept up in 'Macerana-mania' and went on to take first place. Los Del Rio credit their popularity in Australia as having started in Grafton, and presented Joe with a gold plated record issued by ARIA to the band. Despite his insitence, the record did not actually play in record players, and caused joe to ruin a few turntables of friends and family members. Adolescence At some point, Van Halen and the Macerana begun to lose their lustre. The true musician with craved something more. It was at this time, that Joe discovered the likes of Linkin Park. It was loud, brash and obnoxious. They mixed hip-hop with metal, and he liked it. Skipping gaily down to Buckley's Music on the main drag in Grafton, he informed the man behind the counter that there was a new band called Linkin Park, and that the record store would do well to stock their latest CD 'Hybrid Theory'. The counter clerk looked at Joe with suspicion, and asked him to leave, to which Joe replied "You don't know what you're missing out on". With his 'never give in' attitude, Joe went home and created a cardboard sign that said "Linkin park are a best band ever", with which he stood outside of Buckley's Music and picketed them until the store owner relented and called up the distributor, asking for an order of two Linkin Park CD's. Well, those two CD's quickly sold out, and the rest is music industry history. Linkin Park went on to become on of the biggest bands on the planet, but perhaps more importantly the experience was the turning point for Joe and the music industry, something that many believe may have been the first spark of creation in 'Shotgun Entertainment'. It was also around this point that Joe first met mentor Will Smith . At the time, Will Smith was in the country doing promotions for his latest film, and being American he was reluctant to try any of the local Grafton eateries such as the Charcoal chicken as he passed through town. To his delight, he spotted a McDonald's just as he was exiting Grafton, meaning he could get a slice of Americana right then and there. Well, as fate had it, Joe was enjoying the last few bites of a medium sized quarter pounder meal as Smith walked through the entrance. Females in the audience began to scream with excitement, possibly their only glimpse of a real life movie star in their entire lives. Smith ordered two cheesburgers and a diet coke. As he was going to depart, joe reached out to Smith and requested that the famous actor sign his autograph. Smith produced a pen from his coat pocket, but Joe has nothing suitable on which to receive the signature. It was at this time that Joe had a eureka moment, asking Smith to sign one of the restaurant tables, to which Smith replied "Unconventional, I like your style kid". The table was later removed from the restaurant and covered in lucite, so it could be displayed in front of town hall.